A few days ago, I got the first mixes of my album. Obviously, I've been listening non-stop. For anyone reading this who's ever had a child, it's a bit like obsessively staring at your last ultrasound before actually giving birth. It's as close as you've ever come to seeing how your baby's gonna look like, yet it's still not quite actually what it should be, so you can only muse upon the final outcome. I'm not there yet, but I'm as close as ever, and I couldn't be more proud. In all honesty, I wasn't expecting the album to be this good. I'm quite impressed with what I've created. During one of my listens last week, I found myself diving into the momentum of the album utterly and completely. It was like time didn't matter, nor what happened during my day, nor what I had planned for the next one. Space didn't really matter either, nor did the outcome of the future. In that moment, there was me, pure me, and the songs, gliding into one another, and their stories, weaving together the bigger story of Original Game itself. I found myself reconnecting to each of these stories and ultimately reconnecting to the bigger story -the reason behind my Original Game in the first place. And then, I understood what it means to write and release an album, in 2017 -versus writing and releasing a song, which is what most artists do these days. At that point, I told myself This is why I wrote an album anyway. Because it mattered to me to tell this story. Each song is a chapter. You can listen to just one song, if you'd like, but then you're not getting the whole tale, nor the reason behind the song. Listen to the album, or any album, really, in its integrity, and find yourself surrendered to a modern legend, myth, or folklore. We owe it to each other to keep telling stories. This is written in one of Neil Gaiman's books somewhere. It's true. We owe it to ourselves to keep folklore alive, renewed, and up-to-date. 70 years from now, people will listen to the albums we've created, and they'll be able to get a glimpse of the reality of our times. They'll be able to know what our stories were; they'll know what we dreamed of, what we fought for, what we delighted in, and what the shape of our desires was. Let us keep making albums -capture complete sonic tales. Otherwise, we only leave boundless chapters behind, without any beginning or end. I mean, chapters do have beginnings and ends of themselves, but they have no frames to hold them in. Which is fine, if that's what you're aiming at, all things considered. Point is, the Art of the Album is not lost, or gone, or done with. It's a way into modern myths, and a way into another universe.
Mortiis' latest album
cycle has perhaps seen the band on their best and most aggressive
form too date. 'The Great Deceiver' along with it's singles in the
forms of 'Doppelganger' and 'The Shining Lamp Of God' as well as the
'Demons Are Back' video showed the band giving it their all, and the
results naturally were excellent.
Fast-forward and the remix
companion, 'The Great Corrupter', sees release in several formats
(including a streamlined vinyl offering) and boasts an impressive 28
tracks. A lot of remix albums tend to be short and hardly worth
releasing in a physical incarnation, but Håvard Ellefsen seems
intent on giving everyone as much bang for the buck as possible.
The names included who have lent their skills to the album is
pretty impressive as well. The likes of Godflesh, Merzbow, Chris
Vrenna, Pig, Apoptygma Berzerk, Je$us Loves Amerika, Martin Katscan,
Wumpscut, Rhys Fulber, John Fryer, and Die Krupps – whose
contributions on their own would make the album worth your cash –
are just the tip of the iceberg. Acts such as Purient, Axegrinder, Le
Prince Harry, Technomancer, In Slaughter Natives, Cease2xist, and
Deutsch Nepal also contributing some fantastic work.
The
track list moves from hard and heavy industrial metal, through to
dark ambient, ebm, futurepop aggrotech, and noise inspired flavours
with every band adding their own slants to the original and in turn
showing off the strength and versatility of the core tracks.
Production-wise the album moves seamlessly between genres and
despite some drastic sounding overhauls still keeps it's identity as
a Mortiis album. That clean modern mixing with just a hint of grunge
and grime around the edges keeps the continuity from the original
album intact.
This is a very strong remix album. One that by
virtue of it's scale will easily please a lot of people, no matter
which “Era” of Mortiis originally hooked you. The dark ambient
style pieces hark back to the tail end of Era I, while the more
electronic orientated contributions are reminiscent of Era II, and so
on. It's a lot of material to absorb but it is a rare occasion where
the quality and quantity on offer actually matches up.
Despite starting life as a side
project, Freakangel has coalesced into a monster of a band in its own
right. Over the course of seven years the band has developed from a
dark ebm project into an industrial metal powerhouse. The band's
fourth full-length studio effort, 'How The Ghost Became', is their
heaviest offering to date, like punch through a brick wall heavy.
Sounding more like NDH guitars meets Nothing Records grooves, with a
sprinkle of modern aggrotech electronics, the band have have become
a bludgeon of raw and frantic emotion.
Songs such as 'Witness
The Fall', 'Insight', 'Make Me Disappear', 'In The Witch House',
'Death walks With Us', 'Kingdom Of Fire', and 'Devotion' exemplify
this sonic formula best with their heavy guitars, throat-shredding
vocals and strangely enticing electronics hinting at their
club-friendly past, but pushing harder than ever before into that
metal scene. The development, no matter how this may disappoint
anyone who prefers their early incarnation, feels totally organic and
right, much in the same way that the recent releases from Cyanotic,
Combichrist, and Dawn Of Ashes have.
There are the odd songs
that retain an almost dance feel such as 'Giving Up The Ghost', and
'Hell And Back', but even these are firmly punctured by heavy guitars
rooting them in the metal end of the band's sound. But that's not a
bad thing. There is still that strong electronic presence that while
not be 100% dance-friendly isn't a total about turn from their roots.
Being a metal album the production is geared towards
balancing the guitars with the aggressive vocals and making sure the
electronics aren’t swamped by either. The band, know their stuff,
and despite this significantly heavier approach achieve this balance
with relative ease with no one element dominating another to its
detriment.
This is perhaps the strongest and most
well-rounded Freakangel outing to date. In fact it really sounds as
though they have found themselves on this album. Everything seems to
have come together to create a confident, heavy album that perfectly
balances their aggression with their electronic prowess. It has been
a well-paced evolution to this point, but this album feels like year
zero, from which they can launch a wider assault on the metal scene.
Time will tell how they attempt to evolve the sound further, but 'How
The Ghost Became' will certainly be looked on as a pivotal moment.
Pirate metal band Alestorm, from Perth, Scotland, are about to release their 5th full length album 'No Grave But The Sea', set for May 26th via Napalm Records, but as a preview of what it will sound like, this Friday, April 21st, they showed the first single, which is also self-titled. Watch it down here!
Chris Bowes, the lead vocalist and keyboards of the band, says that he: "hope you enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed filming it. It features all the classic elements that people have come to associate with Alestorm: beating up little people, explosions, and the Serbian countryside. The song is pretty good too."
The official tracklist for 'No Grave But The Sea':
1. No Grave But The Sea
2. Mexico
3. To the End of the World
4. Alestorm
5. Bar und Imbiss
6. Fucked with an Anchor
7. Pegleg Potion
8. Man the Pumps
9. Rage of the Pentahook
10. Treasure Island
In support of their new album, Alestorm will be on tour this year with shows in the States and Europe, including the legendary Vans Warped Tour. If you want to be present in any (or all if you're a hardcore fan,) visit Napalm Records' website and save the dates they provide!
Split albums can make for strange
bedfellows, but there is something that just works on this latest 7”
from Broken Limbs Recordings. On the one hand is the UK's most
impressive and original post-black metal act Caïna. With phenomenal
albums such as 'Mourner', 'Temporary Antennae', 'Hands That Pluck',
and 'Setter Of Unseen Snares' walking a fine line between ambient,
shoegaze, black metal, post-punk, and industrial sounds each release
hinges on creating a unique and independent listening experience.
The other sees Texan Blackened Crust merchants Cara Neir, who
with their own impressive legacy due to releases such as 'Portals To
A Better, Dead World', 'The Overwatch', and 'Perpetual Despair Is The
Human Condition' have crafted their own unique and creative voice
within their genre.
The coming together of two such unique
forces is always a joy to behold and despite differing styles, with
Caina's 2014 cut of sprawling and ambient infused black metal on
'Rhosneigr', and the short, sharp and groovy cut 'stained Grey Bones'
from Cara Neir, are perfect companions.
The production is
no-frills and rough across both tracks, but neither are unlistenable.
Long gone is that “necro chic” of the black metal scene, and even
lower budget doesn't mean low quality. The songs are visceral and
direct. There's no room for polish or pretence, just raw and
passionate music.
The end result is a fine split release that
sees two great bands come together and create something genuinely
pleasurable. Caina may be being put to sleep, but with this, the
vinyl re-release of 2007's 'Mourner', and a solo album from Andy
Curtis-Brignell due later this year we can take solace in the fact
there is still more to come. As for Cara Neir,
they are an act who's star is still very much on the rise and despite
nearing their ten-year-anniversary, this is a perfect introduction
for those who haven't had the pleasure yet.
After last
year's spectacular return 'Theophany', it's good to see the
Californian black metal / industrial outfit capitalise on their newly
found momentum sooner rather than later. The result of which is
another incendiary and heavy offering in the form of 'Daemonolatry
Gnosis'. The symphonic elements this time are pushed to the fore
while the black metal backbone is once again pushed harder than ever
before.
The vocals are the most demonic too date and any
resemblance to their earlier hellektro style is now 100% lost to
time. There are still industrial elements floating within the
electronic textures, but once again under the guiding hand of Anaal
Nathrakh's Mick Kenny, the band continue to metamorphose into a more
brutal and extreme incarnation.
The album is an unrelenting
discourse in modern black metal. Sumptuous symphonic elements frame a
core of blistering drums, violent guitars and throat wrenching
vocals. Songs such as 'Gods Of The Antimonian Path', 'Guardians',
'Sermon From The Horned God', 'I Am Nephilim', 'Rulership Of The
Inner World', and 'Magick For The New Aeon' provide the album with a
solid metal back bone that shows a great leap forward in their song
construction and execution. While tracks such as 'The Initiation',
and 'The Ritual' provide nice, if short, counterpoints to the
metallic mayhem with their sinister symphonic industrial construction
building tension nicely.
The only track that doesn't really
work is the pretty straight cover of Mayhem's 'Freezing Moon' which,
while heavy in its execution, lacks a lot of the individual stylistic
elements that makes the previous eleven tracks really pop. It may
have faired better hidden after an outro that book-ended the core
tracks to be discovered.
The production is nice and heavy.
It's always great to see the signature of someone such as Kenny so
perfectly interwoven with a band's sound so as to create something
big and bold in its own right. 'Daemonolatry Gnosis' picks up pretty
much where 'Theophany' left off, but pushes everything harder and
faster this time round.
This is a big step, perhaps even a
milestone in the development of the band. Whereas 'Theophany' was an
exciting and visceral push forward, 'Daemonolatry Gnosis' is a
consolidation of their intent into a focused and brutal assault.
Dawn Of Ashes are very much a black metal beast now. And while it
would be interesting to see how they reconcile their older sounds
moving forward, it is safe to conclude that if they can continue on
this path and incorporate that previous progressive and experimental
mindset of their early work, then there should be no limit for Dawn
Of Ashes.
Upcoming film, The Mummy, directed by Alex Kurtzman, has released its second trailer not long. The film, written by Jon Spaihts and Christopher McQuarrie, is a reboot of The Mummy franchise that started in 1932.
The film stars, among others, Tom Cruise, Sofia Boutella, Annabelle Wallis and Jake Johnson, and it’s scheduled to be released on June 9, 2017 in 3D, 2D and IMAX 3D. This is also intended to be the first instalment in the Universal Monsters shared universe.
If you're into dark fantasy, horror films, the this should be in the group of your most awaited movies of the year. The special effects are nothing to amazed about, but it is the proposal of the end of the world that intrigues me, as this idea hasn't been used that much for a while.
Official Synopsis:
"Tom Cruise headlines a spectacular, all-new cinematic version of the legend that has fascinated cultures all over the world since the dawn of civilization: The Mummy.
Thought safely entombed in a tomb deep beneath the unforgiving desert, an ancient princess (Sofia Boutella) whose destiny was unjustly taken from her is awakened in our current day, bringing with her malevolence grown over millennia and terrors that defy human comprehension.
From the sweeping sands of the Middle East through hidden labyrinths under modern-day London, The Mummy brings a surprising intensity and balance of wonder and thrills in an imaginative new take that ushers in a new world of gods and monsters."
And, in case you missed it, here's the first trailer:
On Saturday 20th of May 2017, Olivia Hyde, the vocalist from ban Bad Polyanna, will give a course for aspiring singers that want to improve their singing techniques from 10am until 6pm. The place where the meeting will be is at Quarry Lodge Studios, Golcar, HD3 4PS (UK).
In the publication, the singer says the event is for "Learn scientific, cutting edge techniques designed to improve your singing in record time. Understand how to interpret songs and the psychology of performance. Gain the tools to improve in your own time after the workshop. Learn in a fun, relaxed and supportive group environment."
Along with different individual and group prices, those who pay the amount of £80 will get the chance to perform as themselves the next day. The singer also published a mail and phone number for her fans to to arrange a fifteen-minute consultation for free or to book a place.
DEFEAT 'Rise' SELF-RELEASED It's
been two years since Defeat's last outing 'You Know Who You Are', but
the Hertfordshire-based electro duo have definitely spent their time
well. The band's old school ebm meets industrial flavours have been
further honed on their seventh studio release, 'Rise', and the result
is definitely a shift in gear. The album still keeps the
fundamental influences of Nitzer Ebb, Front 242 and Front Line
Assembly at the head of the charge, but as with their last outing,
the modern club elements see another big increase in presence. The
result is bigger beats, bigger synths and bigger dance floor
potential with tracks such as 'The Phoenix', 'Dirty/Sick', 'The
Fatalists', and 'Nothing You' providing a strong and driven presence.
While the likes of 'Rage', 'The Hurt', and 'Rise' as well as
the sumptuous closer 'Live Your Life' up the emotional quota of the
album with a more minimal and focussed approach reflecting their old
school roots and adding a couple of little twists for good
measure.
Production-wise this is the best the band have ever
sounded. There are still the odd rough spots, but in comparison to
the last two albums, 'Rise', is easily their strongest showing to
date, that is accessible, dance-friendly and, at times, emotional.
'Rise' is a short, but strong album. It mixes up their
previously tried and tested formula and takes risks where it needs
to. The end result definitely pays of for the duo, particularly with
tracks like 'Dirty/Sick', 'Rise', and 'Live Your Life'. They're
moving out of their comfort zone with every release and the results
speak for themselves. It would be great to get a follow-up to this
album sooner rather than later but with the last two-year gaps
between albums it is evident that Defeat like to take their time, and
to be fair, it does yield results for them.
Frank Tovey, AKA
Fad Gadget was a pioneering force in electronic music as a movement.
His work may be somewhat under-appreciated by the public at large
compared to some of his contemporaries, yet his work was and is
profoundly influential on electronic artists to this day. Avant
garde, rhythmic, melodic, confrontational and socially aware, Tovey's
output is long overdue a musical tribute such as this.
The
album is a not-for-profit release compiled and produced by DJ
Seraphim, and mastered by Jasyn Bangert for Coitus Interruptus
Productions and features acts/artists such as Bioassay,
Canter, Laether Strip, NOIR, George Sarah, Cylab, Microchip Junky and
more adding their spin to classic tracks including 'Collapsing New
People', 'Ricky's Hand', 'Lady Shave', 'Back To Nature', and
'Insecticide'.
Genres such as synthpop, ebm, industrial,
futurepop, darkwave, and post-punk run rampant over the original
compositions reforming them into fresh and modern hits that show just
how groundbreaking Tovey's originals are. The likes of Bioassy, Blakk
Glass, Canter, Cylab, Laether Strip, Maleagant, Microchip Junky,
Noir, and Shrapnihil in particular take the source material and add
some interesting twists through their own unique styles.
The
production and mastering is excellent throughout and each track flows
nicely into the next without jarring against differing styles. And
overall the listening experience has the feel of a complete album as
opposed to a compilation.
This is a great tribute from a
collection of very talented contributors to one of the greatest
electronic artists of all time. The songs have been lovingly
reconstructed to reflect the sounds of 2017, and in doing so
highlight the strength of the originals. The only issue would be that
there are a lot of other great Fad Gadget songs that could have been
featured rather than have some artists doubling up on songs. But
other than that, what has been featured here is excellent, and it
would be nice to maybe get a second album in the future. But in the
meantime, this is a great album not only for Fad Gadget fans, but
also fans of modern electronic music.
On the anniversary of the death of
the enigmatic force behind gothic-doom metal pioneers Type O
Negative, Peter Steele. We take a look back of the unparalleled
career of the innovative front-man and composer.
It always seemed apparent that the time that
Brooklyn born Petrus T. Ratajczyk - better known to fans of Goth Metal
as the basso perfecto frontman of Type O Negative, Peter Steele - last felt truly free was while working for the New
York Parks Department. At this time his 80’s Hardcore/Thrash Metal
band Carnivore had come to an apathetic demise after just two albums,
and the thought of starting a new band was the last thing on his
mind. Instead he’d occupy himself raking leaves, mending fences,
and thinking up new euphemisms for maggots ("dancing rice" being
a popular one among his colleagues).
Then it all went wrong. He broke up
with his long-time girlfriend, attempted suicide, and wrote an album
that saw him signed back to his old record label. The album was
1991’s ‘Slow, Deep and Hard’ a Hardcore/Doom Metal crossover
about infidelity, self-loathing, and everything that pissed off and
depressed the six-foot-six-inch tall Steele in the previous year. The album was
loved by some, and hated by others (including Steele).
“… it was only supposed
to be a demo. I was drunk and pissed and I wrote the whole thing in 4
hours. Little did I know that demo would be pressed into an album. So
we were pretty much trapped into something I wrote in a span of a few
hours […] If I had to do it over, Bloody Kisses would be the first
album.” - Rock Out Censorship
The band were initially condemned by
domestic audiences as communists and homosexuals for Steele’s
Russo-Icelandic heritage and sensitive lyrics. Internationally they
feared little better, with most of their inaugural European tour
cancelled due to anti-fascist groups labelling them a Nazi band
(despite keyboardist Josh Silver being Jewish).
The disastrous tour was immortalised by the band when Roadrunner Records gave them money to
fund the recording of a live album. The band instead spent the money
and recorded a fake live album in a basement with their friend’s
heckling them with the now familiar “You Suck” chant as an overdub. The
album 'Origin of the Faeces: Not Live at Brighton Beach', became a
cult hit for its dry humorous take on a Type O Negative live show as well as their cover of Jimi Hendrix‘s ‘Hey Joe’ (re-dubbed ‘Hey
Peter’). Their label, however, did not see the funny side of it.
The album, despite being reworked tracks from their début, displayed
a different approach to the song writing. Under Steele’s direction,
Silver’s keyboards were mixed higher and became more ambient and
gothic in sound.
This stylistic change of face
carried over onto the band's 1994 sophomore album ‘Bloody Kisses’.
This time the anger was running second fiddle to elaborate gothic
hymns to female stereotypes (‘Black No.1’ and ‘Christian
Woman’), as well as misery and heartache (‘Too Late: Frozen’ and
‘Bloody Kisses - A Death in the Family’). The album was
originally released with many instrumental and humorous tracks, but
after the videos for ‘Black No.1’ and ‘Christian Woman’
received airplay on MTV, a re-edit and re-release of just the core
tracks propelled the album to gold status. A first for the band and
their record label.
With the band’s stock rising
internationally and domestically they crafted a dramatic stage
presence on tour with bands such as Mötley Crüe and Nine Inch
Nails, with Steele’s vampiric persona and trademark red wine
consumption dominating reviews. The label eager to capitalise on the
band’s success pushed Steele for a follow-up.
“I don't know what drugs
they were on. I guess they wanted to make another remake of Bloody
Kisses, Bloody Kisses II or something like that. They didn't get it.”
- NY Rock
The album that Peter wrote
instead was a milestone in what came to be known as “Goth Metal”.
Part gothic rock, part psychedelic, and filtered through Black
Sabbath style doom metal guitars - 1996’s ‘October Rust’ turned
Type O Negative into an international force. The band embarked on
tours with Pantera, Ozzy Osbourne, and headlined festivals in the USA
and Europe. MTV once again came calling and the romantic and playful
videos for ‘Love You To Death’ and ‘My Girlfriend’s
Girlfriend’ turned Steele into a reluctant sex symbol.
This
new-found status even lead to Steele appearing on mainstream talk
shows such as Jerry Springer and Riki Lake as an example of the
definitive “Metal Male”. It wasn’t before long that Playgirl
Magazine invited Steele to do a spread - though Steele was said to be
embarrassed after finding out that most of the magazine’s
subscribers were in fact men. Steele would later look back on the
incident with self-deprecating humour, though the publicity certainly
didn't do the band any harm.
“After I did it, I
thought, "Oh my God, what did I do?" It was more than
upsetting that so many guys had it. Girls, OK, but there just seemed
to be at least as many guys. Not that I'm homophobic, but it was
certainly irritating.” - NY Rock
Though it was the band’s most
successful period it was one of the hardest in Steele’s personal
life. The heights of success inevitably opened the doors to chemical
influences taking hold of the front man and personal tragedies sent
him into another spiral of depression. At this time, burnt out from
two solid years of touring, Steele dreaded the phone calls from the
label asking to write and even more successful record than '…
Kisses' or '… Rust'. Though an album was finally finished it was
evident that Steele was writing to exorcise his demons, not to sell
records.
1999’s ‘World Coming Down’
returned to the melancholic dirges of ‘Bloody Kisses’ sans the
humour. The album was the darkest since the band’s début with
songs like ‘Everyone I Love is Dead’, Everything Dies’, and
‘World Coming Down’ dominating the track listing. The album
wasn’t as well received as previous efforts, but it still fed the
hungry waves of fans and the resulting tour saw Steele motivated and
attempting to clean up his act. An interim best of album called ‘The
Least Worst of Type O Negative’ was released while Steele focused on himself.
“What asshole starts to
drink and use drugs every day when they are 36 or 37? It’s a real
F**king disgrace. I’m kind of shocked at myself, I’m embarrassed
[…] That slump of doing too much drinking and cocaine is becoming a
thing of the past and I’m starting to get myself back a little
bit.” - Terrorizer Magazine
The band’s next album ‘Life is
Killing Me’ showed that Steel was indeed getting back to his old
self. Though dark, the album had the most humorous and playful feel
than any album since ‘Origin…’ and ‘Bloody Kisses’, it even
included a cover of ‘Angry Inch’ from the musical 'Hedwig and the
Angry Inch'. The supporting video for ‘I Don’t Wanna Be Me’
made a modest impact on radio and TV play lists, but ultimately the
band was left to tour to promote the album. This proved to be the
last album released by Roadrunner under the contract Steele had
signed back in the 80’s with Carnivore. The band parted ways with
the label, and soon after European competitors SPV signed them to
release the bands next album.
However, another spell of silence
befell Steele and co. With the band’s webpage proclaiming “Peter
Steele: 1962-2005” creating a stir of wild speculation that the
imposing figure had suddenly died. It turned out to be a joke, if not
an eerily prophetic one. On the interim live DVD ‘Symphony For The
Devil’ and other interviews Steele explained that the length
between releases was down to his incarceration in Riker's Island and
"the psych ward at Kings County Hospital" at the hands of
his family for his psychological and drug problems.
“I violated probation
because you know due to drugs and alcohol and just having a case of
like all I had to do was like show up once a month and put my hand
into a fuckin machine […] I didn't show up for like six months and
then I'm like so, let them come and get me and you know what? Bang!
Bang! Bang! Is Peter there? Housekeeping!" - MK Magazine
But an album did materialise on
SPV records soon after the DVD release. ‘Dead Again’ saw Steele
once again working through his feelings, this time regarding drug
addiction and betrayal (‘Tripping a Blind Man’), as well as his
conversion/reversion to Catholicism (‘Ode to Locksmiths’), and
opinions on abortion (‘These Three Things’). Unlike ‘World
Coming Down’ however, Steele maintained his sense of humour and the
album received a positive run with one of the highest chart positions
since ‘October Rust’ as well as good radio and TV coverage of the
band’s singles ‘Profit of Doom’ and ‘September Sun’. The
subsequent tour received positive reviews for the newly sober Steele,
and the band continued on supporting the album, in 2009 signing up
for the Jaegermeister tour with fellow New Yorkers Hatebreed and 3
Inches Of Blood.
“Apparently, when you’re
drunk you don’t realise how badly you’re playing and how badly
you’re singing. People have told me that I sound much better and
I’m playing much better. I don’t really see it as much as other
people do because I was drunk. But I realise that I was primarily
responsible for almost destroying this band. The last five years of
tours have been full of coke and alcohol and I didn’t think the
thing was apparent […] If I’m fucked up, half the band’s fucked
up […] So I’m trying to rectify the damage that I’ve done by
just doing the best job that I can…” - Hardtimes.ca
Tragically though, Steele’s new
sense of optimism was unfortunately cut short on the 14th of April
2010. The cause was widely reported as heart failure. Rumours of the
front man’s death had flooded the internet but were initially met
with scepticism after the infamous 2005 prank. However, the news that
Steele had died aged only 48 years, was later confirmed by the other members of
Type O Negative and soon tributes flooded in from friends, bands and
fans.
Peter Steele was buried in Saint
Charles Cemetary, Farmingdale alongside his parents. His legacy and
influence has continually been paid tribute in the years since his
death with many bands still citing Type O Negative as a major
influence on their own songwriting.
Steele's talent was a multifaceted
one hidden behind a shy and sensitive shell. His vocal range is one
of the greatest in modern music, his song-craft, composition and ear
for melodies was beyond comparison. And his single-minded
determination to create something unique in the form of Type O
Negative took the band to international acclaim. Though he struggled
with his demons, his body of work is one of the most consistent and
genuine output of any artist around. And it is an output that will
withstand the test of time.
“Well, that's it, that's
all we have. I hope it wasn't too disappointing…” - October Rust, 1996
Whoops!
OK, so I'm even later with this month's editorial. Once again, life
and the days seem to be flying by quicker than I can get through my
to-do list. So apologies if you actually read this and were wondering
what the hell I've been up to (I doubt it but it is nice to believe
sometimes).
As usual I'm going to start by once again
thanking everyone who has downloaded our latest compilation so far,
and give double thanks to those who have donated some money for it.
If you have already downloaded it please recommend it to your
friends. If you haven't got round to downloading it yet (and if you
haven't where have you been so far?) and can just spare a £1
donation, it will all go towards kicking blood cancer's ass! If you
can't donate, that's fine too, but please do make sure you check out
more from the awesome band's that made this possible!
But
what is my topic of conversation this month. Well I think it has to
be a brief look back at the tour de force that was Peter Steele seven
years on (Good Friday to be exact) from his untimely
passing.
Everyone has a band that speaks to them. That one
band that you ‘Get’, that has never released an album you didn’t
like, that has a song for every mood you’ve ever had or will have.
Type O Negative were that band for me. A band to be a little
fanatical for.
As I’m writing this I’m on my
third rotation of 'October Rust'. Ask any genuine metal fans though,
and there will be nods of agreement amongst them that this album was
the bands finest moment alongside their breakthrough 'Bloody Kisses',
and it ensured their place in the annals of music. For me it was the
first album I genuinely and whole-heartedly loved. In the eighteen
years since buying it, whenever I need motivation, a pick me up, or
something cathartic to help put my mind at ease – this album has
been the soundtrack.
When the news first broke of
Peter Steele's death in 2010, I suppose like a lot of people I was
sceptical at the news at first. The band famously made a bad joke
about Peter’s death in 2005 on their website, when in fact he was
at the time detained in a psych ward due to his substance abuse. But
the second time around, it felt different, the outpouring of grief
from people was so immediate and all too genuine.
It was later confirmed by the
band to be true and in the weeks/months that followed it was
confirmed that heart failure, possibly linked to Peter’s well
documented years of substance abuse, was the cause of his untimely
death. A cruel twist due to his newly found sobriety and at what
would have been at the start of the next album writing cycle for the
band.
Type O’s musical legacy is one
fuelled by Steele’s personal demons. From substance abuse, bad
break-ups, and family tragedies they all went into creating a palette
to draw from. But it was also one that drew from his passions and
humour too. Songs like ‘We Hate Everybody’, ‘Kill All The
White People’ and covers such as ‘Angry Inch’ showed that it
wasn’t always doom and gloom, even if the humour was a little
black. Instead the band , with Peter at the helm, created a unique
sound that bridged alien influences such as The Beatles, Black
Sabbath, and The Sisters of Mercy and moulded them to suit.
But that was Type O
Negative and Peter Steele - unique, contradictory, brilliant, and
genuine. In other news, we're on the hunt for a few new
regular contributors to add to our staff. If you're interested in
doing some reviews or even just a monthly column, please contact us
at intravenousmagazine@gmail.com
and we'll take it from there. What kind of person are we looking for?
Well we're after people who are motivated, committed and eager to
take the time to build up a list of PR and label contacts.
For
more information on writing for IVM please visit HERE.
Finally
in other news, I'd like to again extend the invitation to established
scene DJs, artists, and bands to contribute guest DJ mixes that we
will host on Mixcloud. What we're thinking is a series of hour-long
mixes showing off new and classic acts which we will feature on
Mixcloud as well as the Intravenous Magazine website. If anyone is
interested, please contact us at the above email address.
And as
always make sure you have these links in your favourites:
The Walking Wounded today unveil their cover of the Skinny Puppy classic 'Assimilate'. The band, always willing to push boundaries, take the song from it's industrial roots and tanspose it to an orchestral setting.
"It is our great pleasure to present to you our cover of Skinny Puppy's "Assimilate," featuring cellist Jackie Gee. We know the rulebook says "Thou shalt not cover Skinny Puppy," but when the idea struck to do an "orchestral " version of the song, the temptation was too great. This cover arose from a sincere love for the Skinny Puppy's masterpiece - the sonic majesty of which still remains unchallenged."
The song can be heard below via the band's official Spotify account.
For more information, including download details and other releases, please visit the band's official website.
Hot on the heels of the extraordinary
comeback album 'The Gospel', the lord of lard Raymond Watts offers up
another slice of pork for those hungry for more. This time in the
form of remix album 'Swine & Punishment', featuring fourteen
reconstituted and reformed cuts, plus the inclusion of 'Violence', a
track only previously released on vinyl.
A lot of people can
take or leave remix albums, but when they're done right, they can be
damn good. With a list of contributors including SKOLD, Android Lust,
Pull Out Kings, Inertia, KANGA, London After Midnight, tweaker, MC
Lord of the Flies, and Mortiis, even the most hardened remix cynic
would be hard pressed not to have their interest piqued.
The
album takes in a myriad of styles informed by the creators, from
Skold's dark and sinister take on 'The Diamond Sinners', through to
delicately demented version of 'The Fly Upon The Pin', and the
heavily electronic mix of 'Viva Evil' courtesy of Mortiis. It's a
great collection of remixes that give the original versions some
great and even unexpected twists. Some perfect for the dancefloor,
and other perfect for you mp3 player.
Despite the big mix of
styles the tracks flow quite nicely and even with some going for a
grittier sound and others favouring a more polished approach, the
production finds a nice balance between them all making sure each
track has the right kick to it.
This is a remix album, and
while it might not garner the same attention a release of brand new
material, it is nonetheless a well-constructed effort that has seen a
lot of incredibly talented artists create some genuinely interesting
contributions. For PIG completeists and long-time fans it will
undoubtedly be a must have, but even if you're relatively new to PIG,
this is still a good companion to 'The Gospel' in its own right.
The influence of the legendary British techno-rock outfit
Cubanate cannot be understated. One of the first acts to cross
frantic techno and rave electronics with gritty rock guitars they
both courted controversy and intrigue in equal measure. They even
managed some mainstream flirtations with a track featured on the Gran
Tourismo video game, as well as a soundtrack appearance on Mortal
Kombat, plus extensive tours with the likes of Gary Numan, Rammstein,
The Sisters of Mercy and Front 242.
The band may have been
relatively short-lived but, as the millennium came and went, the
number of bands taking a direct influence from began to increase,
thus securing their place in the annals of industrial rock.
The
band's new release, 'Brutalism' is a retrospective that covers their
first three albums, 'Antimatter', 'Cyberia', and 'Barbarossa' which
yielded classic singles ‘Oxyacetylene’, ‘Body Burn’, and
‘Joy’. The fourteen tracks featured here represent the finest
cuts of the band's early and perhaps most groundbreaking work. The
tracks have been giving a loving remaster and as a result sound as
though they were written and recorded yesterday, showing really just
how far ahead of the curve Heal and Barry were back in the early-mid
90s.
Tracks such as 'Autonomy', 'Body Burn', 'Hatesong',
'Oxyacetalyne', 'Industry', 'Vortech I', and 'Joy' can still compete
with the freshest industrial rock tracks today. Combining a punk rock
abandon of convention, experimentalism and fundamentally good
songwriting, this track list is a perfect introduction to the band.
The tracks are wild and anarchic rides perforated by techno
beats, rave electronics and searing guitars that despite their quick
and on the fly original recordings still measure up in 2017. The
remastering has allowed the songs to shine through once more and
though the scene may be home to more illegitimate offspring than
ever, 'Brutalism' shows that Cubanate are definitely the daddies.
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